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Why do we need 91 or higher octane?

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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 02:32 PM
  #21  
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Originally Posted by SoGA
OK, here's something for you guys to worry about. Let's say you have a 3 gallon tank and you stop to fill up on a half tank. You pull up to the pump, scan your card, select 93 octane and go to pumping. How much 87 octane is there in the hose left from the last guy in a pickup? You buy 1-1/2 gallons at premium price and get a half-and-half mixture of 87 and 93 octane. Bummer.....
Yeah, that's so true! Wouldn't that make it 90 octane? But what keeps me awake at night is; where do the 3 gallon tank dudes put the cap when they fuel, vs. the 5 gallon dudes?
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 02:42 PM
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stop guys, some friends of mine were killed in freak gasoline fight accident and this is all hitting a little close to home


 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 02:48 PM
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You're right Big Love! I'm sorry. One last question though? I was thinking about taking up smoking and I need to plan in advance where I store my lit cigarette while filling up. The cap on the seat. Trust me, you'll remember REAL fast if you forgot it.
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 03:04 PM
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Originally Posted by brakeless
No I know you're not the OP. I just saw you had an '04 and so do I. FLSTCI. And I can't find where to add that into my signature line. DOH! Damned 'puters. And I plugged my laptop into my bike and strapped it to the passenger seat to record runs.
Okay I see the problem now, I'm in "Mobile View"! Can't see all the pics, signatures, etc, on my phone. Now if I can just figure out how to toggle between the Desktop and Mobile View....
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 03:40 PM
  #25  
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Originally Posted by RIPSAW
Ethanol is easily good for almost a year. You don't need anything in the fuel tank but gas.
This is pretty poor advice, IMHO. I've seen ethanol gas go bad in as little as a month. It draws in moisture, and the resulting mixture makes one hell of a mess. It gets gummy, varnished, and causes corrosion anywhere it sits.
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 03:55 PM
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I tried a lower octane and my engine didn’t like it. Pinged like a ****
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 04:03 PM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by brakeless
Okay I see the problem now, I'm in "Mobile View"! Can't see all the pics, signatures, etc, on my phone. Now if I can just figure out how to toggle between the Desktop and Mobile View....
3 dots, top right of the screen. Open the menu, scroll down, check "DESKTOP SITE" boom, mobile browsing, no longer mobile.
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 04:11 PM
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Originally Posted by brakeless
No I know you're not the OP. I just saw you had an '04 and so do I. FLSTCI. And I can't find where to add that into my signature line. DOH! Damned 'puters. And I plugged my laptop into my bike and strapped it to the passenger seat to record runs.
Be sure you are on desk top site. What I use even on phone.

Top left. Hit USER CPDown left side of your control panel.
Settings and Profile.
Edit signature.

Takes a few tries getting it right with spacing and size and stuff. Just keep saving and reading looking for system errors or how it looks. Then jump over to your last post to double check.
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 04:16 PM
  #29  
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Originally Posted by RIPSAW
Be sure you are on desk top site. What I use even on phone.

Top left. Hit USER CPDown left side of your control panel.
Settings and Profile.
Edit signature.

Takes a few tries getting it right with spacing and size and stuff. Just keep saving and reading looking for system errors or how it looks. Then jump over to your last post to double check.
Think I got it. Thanks guys. Really different now! LOL!
 
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Old Jan 29, 2021 | 04:20 PM
  #30  
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The original question is something that I've wondered about as well. I do run the higher octane in my bike as recommended. What gets me thinking is how bad is it to run a lower octane?

When I did my trip to Alaska a few years ago, most of the gas I could buy at some point was 87 octane. There wasn't even an 89 octane option. I had a KLR650, so I never worried about it, but, I often think of doing another Alaska trip on my Harley. I know people do similar trips on Harleys, so is it all that bad to run 87 octane through a few tanks of gas? Will I lessen the length of life of the engine?

I'm guessing there isn't a hard and fast answer.
 
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